How to protect your home from flooding

Thousands of homes in the UK have been affected by flooding over the past couple of months. We offer some advice on how to protect your home from flooding and take a look at what the government are doing to help.

January 6, 2016

The end of 2015 saw thousands of homeowners affected by the extreme weather of Storm Desmond and the subsequent floods. If you’ve been affected by the recent flooding, or are worried your home is at risk, there are steps you can take to prepare your property and help protect your home from flooding.

How do I protect my home from flooding?

Find out if you’re at risk

Use flood risk maps to check if you’re at risk from rivers, the sea, surface water or reservoirs

Email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk to find out the flooding history of the land around your property

Sign up for flood warnings online or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188 if you’re in an area at risk

You must contact the Environment Agency if your plans will affect the flow of a river or will divert flood water to other properties

If you live in a riverside property, you must manage your own flood risk, maintain river beds and banks and not obstruct the water flow

Get insurance

Contact the National Flood Forum for advice on how to get insurance and reduce your premium or excess

Contact the British Insurance Brokers’ Association to find a broker that specialises in properties that are difficult to insure

Get evidence – an insurance company may ask you for an Insurance Related Request Letter if your property is at risk of flooding. The insurer will use the letter to decide if they’ll insure you and how much it will cost

Will this have an impact on selling my home?

We would advise homeowners to be honest and declare if their property has been affected by flooding

When selling, try and demonstrate the preventative measures you have in place

Be open about insurance and premiums, as this is a big worry to new buyers

If your property was built before 2009, there is a cap on insurance premiums so it will stay affordable

How are the government helping?

There has clearly been severe underinvestment in flood prevention and defences

David Cameron has recently announced that £40m will be spent on repairing and reinforcing flood defences damaged by Storm Eva

Around £10m of the funding will be used to improve defences in York after they failed to cope during the storm

What about new homes?

5 million homes are currently at risk, due to having been built on flood plains (1 in 6 homes in the UK)

With twice the number of new houses being built in high-risk areas than elsewhere, the government are simply storing up problems for the future

When buying a new home, make sure you do your research on the area and development plot

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1 Comment

I recommend the Environment Agency maps. Go to link below for the risk of flooding from rivers and sea. In urban areas especially this is broken down into a lot of detail and you can type in your postcode.